Perforator



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet i.

J. WHITELAW.

PERFORATOR.

" No. 380,614. Patented Apr. 3, 1888..

N PETERS. PhMoCllhmuaph-w. Washulgtnn. C1 c.

UNITED STATES.

PATENT EEicE.

JAMES WHITELAYV, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

PERFORATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 380,614, dated April 3,1888.

Application filed May 31, 1887. Serial No. 239.770. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JAMES WHITELAW, of St. Louis, Missouri, have made anew and useful Improvement in Perforators, of which the followingis afull, clear, and exact description.

A series of punches, in number corresponding to the letters, numbers, orcharacters to be cutout, is held, and the punches are adapted to beoperated vertically in an overhanging guide at the front of the machine,and in the base-plate, beneath the punches, is a corresponding series ofdies. In the upper part of the machine, in the rear of and parallel withthe guide, is abar upon which is journaled the lever used to depress thepunches. The lever can also he slipped upon the bar to bring it, asdesired, over or in line with any one of the punches. In addition to thelever a frame is hung and adapted to he slipped upon the bar, and it ispreferably connected with the lever, to be moved wit-h it as the leveris slipped upon the bar. The frame carries the paper-holder as well asan escapement mechanism for feeding the paper-holder as the paper isperforated, and the lever, in addition to operating the punches, isconstructed to operate the escapement mechanism, by which means, afterthe paper has been inserted in the holder, the operator can manipulatethe entire machine and complete the perforating by means of the leveronly.

In the annexed drawings, making part of this specification, the mostdesirable mode of carrying out the improvement is exhibited.

Figure 1 is a plan of the machine. Fig. 2is a vertical cross-section onthe line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a view in perspective from the rear ofthe sliding mechanism. Fig. 4 is a detail, being a view in perspectivefrom the rear of the punch and escapement-operating lever. Fig. 5 is aview in perspective from the front of the machine, and Fig. 6 is a planof the paper-holder slide.

The same letters of reference denote the same parts.

A represents the base-plate.

B B represent uprights at the ends a a, respectively,of the base-plateand projecting upward therefrom to bring their upper ends into positionto support theguideCabove the front a of the base-plate.

D D, 8w, represent the series of punches. They are of the usual shape,are adapted to be moved vertically in the guide, are each upheld by aspring, E, and are adapted to be thrust downward by means of the leverF, which, when the handlefof the lever is depressed, forces the punchdownward, and thereby effeet-s the perforating of the paper, which isheld in the holder G above the dies H in the baseplate.

I represents the bar upon which the lever F turns and slides. It isconveniently upheld, as shown, in the uprights B B. The move ments ofthe lever are indicated by the broken lines in Figs. 1, 2, respectively.

J represents the frame which carries the paper holding and feedingmechanism. It is suspended from the bar I by means of the lugsjj, whichencircle the bar at the ends,respectively, of the lever-sleeve f, and itis stayed in an upright position by means of the guide-bar K.

An upright shaft, L,is journaled in the frame at Z, and is provided withthe ratchet Z and the gear I. The paper-holder G is attached to a.slide, M,which in turn is held at m and adapted to be slippedlongitudinallythat is, in the direction of the length of the machine-inthe frame J. The slide is provided with a rack, N, which engages withthe gear 2'. The lever F is extended atf and is provided with the fixedprojection f and the pivoted dog f which lastnamed parts coact with theratchet Z. A coil-spring, P, whenever the ratchet is released, acts toeffect the rotation of the shaft L and gear Z in the direction of thearrow as, Fig. 1. A spring, Q, serves to draw down the inner end of thelever F, and to bring the projection f out of and the dog f intoengagement with the ratchet whenever the outer end of the lever F canrise.

The operation of the improvement is as fol lows: The paper R to beperforated is suitably inserted in the holder G to bring that part ofthe paper which is to be' perforated beneath the opening 9 in theholder. The slide M is then moved in the frame J into its posit-ionshown in the full lines in Fig. 1. This movement of the slide M, bymeans of the rack N and gear 2', effects the winding of the coilspring1?, and but for the engagement of the lever-dog with the ratchet theslide, by reason of the tendency of the coil-spring to unwind, wouldreturn to its original position. (Indicated by the broken lines, Fig.1.) The leverdog, however, prevents the return of the slide, and theentire sliding mechanism, including the lever, the frame J, the slide M,paperholder, and paper, is, by means of the lever, slipped upon the barI until the lever is brought over that punch which it is desired to use,whereupon the handle end of the lever is depressed and the punch beneathit caused to act. In this position of the lever its projectionf is inengagementwith the ratchet Z, and the slide M remains stationary in theframe J; but as soon as the handle end of the lever is raised, as itmust be in order to. depress another or even the same punch, theprojectionf passes downward out of the plane of the ratchet. Thecoil-spring P then acts to move the slide M in the direction of thearrow as", Fig. 1, until the lever-dogf encounters the stopf Thepaper-holder moves with the slide N, and the paper in consequence ismoved the proper distance for the next perforation, whereupon the leveris again moved to above the desired punch and again depressed, and thepaper is shifted another space, and so on until the desired number ofperforations has been made.

I claim a 1. The combination, in a perforator, of the slidingpaper-holder G, held above the base plate, the slide M, to which theholder is attached, having the rack N, the gear Z connected with theupright shaft L, the frame J to which the slide is secured, and thelever F, extended at f having projection at f, the dog f, the ratchet Z,and the spring P, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the lever F, movable on bar I, the punches D,actuated by said lever, and the paper-holder slide provided with therack, with the frame J, the shaft L, the gear I, the coilspring P, andescapement mechanism connected with said shaft, substantially asdescribed.

3. The combination of the paper-holder slide provided with the rack,with the frame J, the shaft L, the gear Z, the coil-spring P, theratchet Z, the lever F, extended and provided with the projection anddog, and the rod I, on which said lever turns and slides, and thepunches D, each upheld by a spring, E, substantially as described. I

4. The combination of the paper-holder slide, the rack, the frame J, theshaft L, the gear Z", the coil-spring P, the ratchet Z, the rod I, thelever F, extended and having the projection and dog, the guide 0, andthe punches D, each having a spring, E, substantially as described.

JAMES WHITELAW.

Witnesses:

G. D. MoonY, A. M. EVERIST.

